Full DIY Gear

[MSilvia]

what isn’t really possible:
Wings
Tanks
Regulators

RockPile isn't saying that it is impossible, since obviously it is, but simply not feasible.

He may have meant "not feasible", but not possible is what he actually said. Naturally, those who know that it is definately possible took issue with that assertion. There are a great many things in this world that are very unlikely, not feasible for most people, or not worth the trouble, but are done anyhow.

I can't wait to see the chrome on your impossible project Creed.

 

[Creed]

He may have meant "not feasible", but not possible is what he actually said. Naturally, those who know that it is definately possible took issue with that assertion. There are a great many things in this world that are very unlikely, not feasible for most people, or not worth the trouble, but are done anyhow.

I can't wait to see the chrome on your impossible project Creed.

Thank, Matt! I have plenty of tweaking to do before the chrome job becomes priority, but if it looks like I'll get to go to next year's Sanddog vintage event, I'll definitely speed it along!

Right now, I am designing a set of cast brass cases, with some enhancements over the DAAM case. I have 4 more Voit Titan's awaiting conversion already.

 

[pdh]

In addition I service my own regs..... have a read of the apeks service manual sometime if you want to see why they work so well, and how easy the service is... hence why I dive them...
<snip>
And yes my apeks does breathe real nice.. but the point is someone had to make it so it can and is being done all of the time!
<snip>
I do agree that if you are making your own gear, you need to be fully informed and aware of what you are doing... and not completely oblivious to the laws of nature and engineering!

I've been reading this thread with interest. I've also thought that it would be cool to try and make a reg just to see how feasible it is to do it (I consider myself to be a competent machinist). I also dive Apeks and service them myself and would certainly use that design as a starting point. I've also been to the factory here in the UK and seen the setup that makes them. Apeks make everything from scratch on very expensive CNC machines, except the o rings. They do all of the injection mouldings, plating etc on site. A really impressive setup - they also make the Aqualung regs in the same factory. However it's not just the manufacturing that needs to be thought about. The testing of the design is also very important. Having seen the test chambers that measure breathing resistance etc in freezing sea water at 100 metres down I'm not sure that the DIYer could test anything they made to that level. I trust the regs I dive because I know how much time Apeks puts into design, testing and building them and how much time I spend in making sure they are serviced correctly. I'm not sure I would ever trust my DIY regs on a deep trimix dive to that extent, so if I ever made any it would just be an exercise to see if it's possible, and we all know it is. However given that the time to make them would be vast (I mean making EVERYTHING from scratch) and the cost to buy them is not much in comparison I have to ask myself what would be the point. The DIY kit I make is to either make something a lot cheaper than I can buy it or to get something that works better than anything out there. I don't think regs fall into this category.

I'd be interested if anybody had made a reg (all of it) and dived it to a decent depth - say 40 metres (130 foot) - without taking a commercial one along for a spare - now that would be trust in your own workmanship.

Just my 2p worth (that's 4 cents). Paul.

 

[Creed]

I'd be interested if anybody had made a reg (all of it) and dived it to a decent depth - say 40 metres (130 foot) - without taking a commercial one along for a spare - now that would be trust in your own workmanship.

Well, anyone who would not make incremental tests of ANY piece of new equipment is being foolish. And I think this holds true for purchased equipment as well. Factories can make mistakes, too, and jumping into 130ft with an untested reg and no backup is unwise no matter who made it.

My first dive was 10 feet. The next will be 30-40, and so on. Other vintage divers have taken Phoenix regulators(see vintagedoublehose.com for more info on that) to those depths with no problems.

But, as it happens, I do know of a person who had a reg made exactly as you described, and dove it to those depths. His last name was Cousteau.

My project was basically to create a new double hose regulator from a commonly available single hose. I didn't really design much, as much as I synthesized a design from various sources, and used parts from various regulators to make my reg work. Talk to me in a year, and we'll see if my planned design of a completely self manufactured regulator works out.

 

[Luis H]

I can&#8217;t really think of anyone or any company that has designed or built a regulator totally from scratch. They are very simple pieces of equipment (which is part of their beauty) but even Cousteau-Gagnon started with regulators used in aviation.

Even the largest Scuba manufacturers capable of designing and manufacturing most of the parts would be foolish not to start a new design based on the knowledge from the previous designs (and the better ones use as many of the same parts as possible). If you notice all regulators are just minor modifications of what has been around for several decades. The modifications are often just cosmetic or in the use of less expensive materials.

Using common parts and parts from previous designs is a good design feature when it comes to future service and stocking spare parts.


I have dived the Phoenix Royal Aqua Master to below 100 ft several times without any redundancy (other than a dive buddy) because I consider it extremely reliable. So far, it has proven to be more reliable than several of my dive friend&#8217;s new regulators. It is a good thing that I always bring a spare one on my safe a dive kit for friends to try.

Truly, I don&#8217;t consider the Phoenix RAM a DIY regulator not only because I only redesign the first stage, but because I actually didn&#8217;t cut any metal. I only did the design, the engineering, and detail drawings for a machine shop to make the body. By design, it uses as many &#8220;standard&#8221; of the shelf parts as possible.

 

[Creed]

Truly, I don’t consider the Phoenix RAM a DIY regulator not only because I only redesign the first stage, but because I actually didn’t cut any metal. I only did the design, the engineering, and detail drawings for a machine shop to make the body. By design, it uses as many “standard” of the shelf parts as possible.

True. I don't really consider my regulator as DIY, even though I did do some of the machine work myself. And even the design I've been toying with having made is still at heart a RAM/Conshelf style regulator, which will use the same internal parts.

 

[stevewirl]

my god are you all mad .

id stectch to abit to do abit of diy fix it up . i never let my gear get any older than 2 years old before i sell them on . it costs less in the long run to up grade on goingly .

but building your own gear

MAD!!!!!!!!!!

 

[O2BBubbleFree]

my god are you all mad .

id stectch to abit to do abit of diy fix it up . i never let my gear get any older than 2 years old before i sell them on . it costs less in the long run to up grade on goingly .

but building your own gear

MAD!!!!!!!!!!

You replace your gear every two years? Two-year-old regulators are unproven. Are you mad?

 

[Ed Palma]

I'm proud to be mad. MAD!!!!!!!!!

Proud I say.

 

[Creed]

my god are you all mad .

id stectch to abit to do abit of diy fix it up . i never let my gear get any older than 2 years old before i sell them on . it costs less in the long run to up grade on goingly .

but building your own gear

MAD!!!!!!!!!!

Then you are wasting money for no reason. Provided that there is no mechanical failure, regulators and such don't just go bad(aside from replaceable like hoses and seals). I have regulators well over 40 years old that perform as well, or better, than anything I could buy today.

Unless this is just a troll, why are you even posting on this part of the forum? I know the risks of making my own gear, likely better than you. Your post comes off as wide eyed hand wringing.